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Precious Majola

Cape Town
News24 User

'Retailers stealing from us'

by Precious Majola
2009-06-30 08:01

Dear Editor,

In South Africa food inflation at retail is still in double digit and it advanced to 12.1% year on year in May 2009.

Meanwhile, food prices in developed and some emerging markets countries are negative.

Clearly, there is uncompetitive behaviour taking place by the big four retailers (Pick 'n Pay, Spar, Shoprite and Woolworth).

Food at PPI has slowed sharply recording -1.1% year on year at agriculture, -6.2% at manufacturing in May 2009.

South Africans are battling with rampant unemployment and poverty. In the first quarter the numbers released by Statssa suggest 179 000 people lost their jobs and mining and manufacturing which are labour intensive and employ bulk of unskilled labour were hit the hardest.

These companies are stealing from South Africans, when commodity booms they enrich themselves and disadvantage the masses.

Similarly, when prices are falling they don't want to let go of fat bonuses and business class they travel with.

The competition commission must, on behalf of consumers, punish all those who violate competition acts.

Precious Majola

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KOBUS 6/30/2009 8:04:42 AM
Nasty hobbitses! (Sorry, I couldn't resist!)

henk 6/30/2009 8:18:52 AM
why cant ALL south africans boycott the supermarkets only for a week. look what the doctors achieved in this past week or two. just think how it will feel to walk into a shop and pay a reasonable price for whatever.

Topdog 6/30/2009 8:21:49 AM
I agree. They have to be investigated. I'm interested in your statement "they punish the masses". Are you referring to a specific group of people in the country or to the public in general? If you are referring to the public in general, then say so. Don't call the public the masses, I am not a masses.

billy 6/30/2009 8:22:32 AM
Cannot agree more with you!!!Every time one go's to the shops the prices of food has changed.It is getting more difficult to buy the basics evey month.My heart go's out to the poor who cant get by...Something should be done.

cedb00 6/30/2009 8:23:36 AM
18 months ago the coffee that I buy cost R23,99 a can. Last week I bought the same can and it was R53,99 at Pick 'n Pay. The same can cost R49.99 at Spar. Surely this cannot be right?

Jan 6/30/2009 8:24:13 AM
Problem with the commission giving them a fine is that it is just passed on to the consumer so they get a double whammy. Change the law to include criminal charges against CEO's and CFO's of guilty companies and watch the things start changing when the first one goes to jail.

wayne 6/30/2009 8:25:11 AM
Huge fines of 90 million were issued to Tiger brands for bread price fixing what did it help the consumer ??? they paid the fines and just increased the price of the bread to cover their costs. The poor did not benefit in fact we are now paying more for bread than before the price fixing scandal so whats the point ?? the commission is only a barking dog it cant bite. So whats the point ??

Eles 6/30/2009 8:27:00 AM
I agree we are living in tough economic times and we are ripped off at every turn most people are not receiving increases this year but are faced with retrenchments and working short-time. Added to that we are taxed so much - more effort is required on government's part. The middle class can no longer support the poor we are slowly joining that class ourselves. Government must stop overspending and tax less we just can't afford it anymore. PS bonuses for government employees and increases must be addressed given that most citizens won't be receiving these we could be taxed less and instead these people could forfeit their increases after all it is not like they are winning any awards for performance so are they really deserving - I think not!

JMC 6/30/2009 8:28:31 AM
The competition commission is a farce. They give huge fines, which goes straight into governments pockets and in the long run the fines are recuperated from the consumer anyway.

YES 6/30/2009 8:29:39 AM
I totally agree with you Precious, what I find really frustrating is, when the petrol price goes up, food prices go up, when the petrol price comes down, food prices stay the same? how does that work??? In other words, food just goes up and up, no matter what. And all these shops that say "special" on what? coke, etc, things that are actually luxuries, what about the REAL food people eat!

allan 6/30/2009 8:32:37 AM
agree 100% ..........was recently in the UK and went grocery shopping with family members who live there...........was surprised that their shopping basket from Morrisons was actually cheaper than mine a few days later from Spar! Thought S A was cheap to live in!!!! Agree with Precious that it is all about excessive profit taking and greed.Maybe we should be more circumspect when shopping and boycott greedy suppliers and vendors.

Gogirl 6/30/2009 8:33:19 AM
It was determined that our bakeries were colluding with the bread prices - they paid the fines, yet nothing has changed. Bread still costs the same in all the supermarkets. The prices also have not come down. What do you expect to happen after this investigation? You must remember that the "big shots - CEO etc" all have shares in all these companies - they benefit from all-over.

Nigel 6/30/2009 8:45:45 AM
I agree that food inflation is way too high, but the question is who are the culprits, is it the retailers, wholesalers or manufacturers or a combination of them. I know that Pick `n Pays mark up is only a few percent, they seem to make most of their money on the interest they earn by paying their suppliers on 60 or 90 day terms, but this in itself could be a problem, as the supplier may then inflate their prices to PnP to make up for the interest lost on receipt of the payment. Either way the Govt. is going to make an enquiry into food chain pricing, I just hope that they uncover any collusion, price fixing, or unfair practice that may be occurring.

Halfwise 6/30/2009 8:45:49 AM
@Precious – zuma will be solving all job losses problems as per his nation address speech. Tell me one thing, who makes profit out of these retailers.. Do some research please, its not our fault if you don't have balls.

Bongani 6/30/2009 8:48:07 AM
Our retailers are just taking advantage of the elasticity of demand rule. The South African demand is inelastic. Remember the PPI is taken using things, like bread, vegetables and maize meal, which is the core food in South Africa. If producers and retailers have more power they can easily use the cost push just like OPEC. We can overcome this problem if as people we start producing our own food instead of all of us moving to complexes with zero gardens. When was the last time you saw a farmer.

JDW 6/30/2009 8:50:49 AM
Does not matter what happens with this enquiry nothing will be solved, we still need food so we cannot boycot them. I just wonder what happens to these fine, when the bread companies were fined the prices went up again probably to pay for the fine but where does this money go to, why not rather use this money and subsidies the price of bread for an x amount of time. The same will happen here if any of these retailers are found guiltya nd fined they will just raise prices again to pay you will not see prices go down as a result and the proof of that is once again in the bread cartel the prices has still not come down. The only purpose here according to me is to proof what we already know but the normal consumer that has been done in will still be done in.

Deon 6/30/2009 8:51:02 AM
I agree that these companies should be punished BUT where does the money go that they get fined? We as consumers pay too much, the seller gets fined and the Comp Com takes the money! There is no benefit from all this to the consumer!

Bryan 6/30/2009 8:51:06 AM
I have experienced and heard that the price you see on the shelf and when you pay is not the same. Paying at the till the items cost more. How many South Africans are being conned like that. Thanx Pick n Pay

Poloyatonki 6/30/2009 8:53:19 AM
Precious…JZ said he will be fixing the unemployment problems and we know its his priority. ('Retailers stealing from us') That is called a new form of injustice; they are now punishing us by increasing prices.

ook Gatvol 6/30/2009 8:54:07 AM
BRAVO! nail those bastards. Just because we are isolated on the southern tip of Africa does not give anyone the right to rip us off. enough is enough.

cedb00 6/30/2009 8:56:14 AM
Do yourself a favour and compare the big supermarkets' prices to that of Fruit & Veg City. You will clearly see how these supermarkets rip you off. Over the weekend I bought a trolly load of fruit, veg and canned goods from Fruit & Veg City for about R90. I am sure the same trolly would have been R200+ at the supermarkets! (One example, compare the yoghurt prices and you'll see what I am talking about!)

bily bob 6/30/2009 8:59:21 AM
My Precious, before you get on your high horse learn to read a financial statement and look what these companies margins are. They are all listed and publish their financials and I don’t think a 3% margin is “stealing” from you! If you want the choice then you need to pay for it, I am sure you don’t work for free. Man we have become a nation of un educated whingers!!

Ebs 6/30/2009 8:59:58 AM
Do you realise that for every Rand of sales, the retailers only profit 2c? Wake up you idiots! It is because of competition between retailers that prices are kept in check. Inflation is a fact of life. Learn to live with it.

unknown 6/30/2009 9:01:41 AM
Just to add to cedb00's comment. Last year a 2kg Tastic rice was round about R10-R12. Now you won't pay less than R23. Rice grows in water, the labour is cheap to harvest it, the petrol prices came down from R10-R11 a litre. Somewhere there is a real problem of greed and it should be addressed by the watchdog responsible for pricefixing

cedb @ Halftwit 6/30/2009 9:02:08 AM
"zuma will be solving all job losses problems"? And what is his plan to do this, Halfbrain?

Sinudeity @Poloyatonki 6/30/2009 9:09:40 AM
JZ also said he would end corruption...

Spartan 6/30/2009 9:13:18 AM
Inflation is one of our big problems, the other is our current account deficit. High inflation causes high interest rates. Either way inflation (currently at about 12% unofficially) & prime lending rates (12%) are rediculoulsly too high, just think about it every year you pay 12% interest on money borrowed, so if you borrowed R 1m you pay R 120 000 interest per year, this is a one way ticket to being poorer every year. What is the solution? there are many things that need to be done 1) inflation must come down to 3 -6 %, 2) exports must go up & imports come down, 3) further FDI (investment) must be attracted, 4) Extensive, short, med & long term job creation must be achieved.

daniel 6/30/2009 9:19:13 AM
Precious precious precious. if these supermarkets are fined millions - all they will do is make up these losses by increasing prices - so do we really want that. And secondly, why has nobody ever queried where and what happens to the millions in fines paid to the competition commision for bread, milk etc price fixing ???????

Sachet Watcher 6/30/2009 9:20:37 AM
Go into any supermarket and check out the sachets of milk. They must be over 1000grams, and would you believe it, I have found sachets in Checkers, of their house brand that are only 860 grams, a quick 14% profit there with out anybody being the wiser. When you bring this to the attention of the management, they say the scale is wrong and put the milk back on the shelf...

d 6/30/2009 9:21:22 AM
we all want cheaper prices but higher wages - go figure how the companies nned to make more money to pay these wages if they cannot increase priices

mike 6/30/2009 9:25:46 AM
The problem of consumers been ripped off runs across the board in SA. Sadly, from the manufacturers to the retailers, they all adding their margins and its not a minimal margins, its based on how far they can rip Joe Soap off. The bread prices never came down after the bread companies were fined, same will go for all other industries. There needs to be an organization that keeps these companies in check. Take the banking industry for example, making 3.5% on every rand plus the interest, service fees etc etc that we are charged, and on top of that they use our money that we so graciously give them to look after, and invest it in money markets, earning upwards of 25%.

The food retailers blame the prices of fuel to increase prices but never drop them accordingly, using a wait and see attitude before they react and than they never do. Its time that we as consumers stand up against these companies. Lets us all stop buying Coke/Pepsi for a month and see what happens. United we can make a difference, but if you have the attitude that "its not my problem" we will get no where.

Sarah 6/30/2009 9:29:25 AM
Right. All you grumpy consumers... Your best bet is to do what your mothers and grandmothers did. Don't go to one place (supermarket) to buy everything you need. Support your local butcher for meat, support your local greengrocer for vegies - buy your cleaning materials in bulk at local discount stores - all of these things will draw the business away from the large companies & will cause a re-think on their part when they see they are losing market share. You will also love the extra money in your pocket each month. I ran a private test on the "W" company, and found that they have increased prices on certain items 3 times this year already (it's only June ffsakes) - I revolt. I will not support any of the large stores unless it is absolutely not available at a better price anywhere else.

Glock 22 c 6/30/2009 9:29:56 AM
I agree with Halftwat. Just wait for Zuma. He will fix all the problems that the anc couldn't in the past 15 years. It will only take 300 years so just be patient ok masses !!

SimonP 6/30/2009 9:33:57 AM
Poloyatonki & Halfwise: You both state JZ will fix the job losses as per his speech. Was it not 500000 by year end? Add the recent job losses and it brings it to more. The big question is how, has he told you? All Ive heard is talk and no plan, just like I hear from you two.

JayBeeBaby 6/30/2009 9:34:23 AM
People should understand the basics before commenting. Retailers are DISTRIBUTORS not MANUFACTURERS. PnP, Spar etc buy the same can of baked beans from the manufacturer - at marginally different prices depending on volumes. Retailers turnover is up 12-15% because of higher input costs i.e. manufacturer prices. But margins are down because of fierce competition for market share. Because of reduced margins, share prices are well down since the economic downturn e.g. Woolworths is down 40% from its peak. Quite simply, RETAILERS are making smaller margins on distributing the much higher priced food items received from MANUFACTURERS. Some food for thought for the Competition Board?

cedb00 @ bily bob 6/30/2009 9:34:34 AM
...and yet Pick 'n Pay has a cash surplus of more than R1 billion??? Answer the question I raised above. Did coffee prices increase by 225% over the last 18 months? No, then why should Pick 'n Pay's coffee price increase by that much? (BTW, we all know how easy it is to manipulate financials!)

notice 6/30/2009 9:36:15 AM
okay every one when do we start the boycott? and is everyone going to stick to this ?

me 6/30/2009 9:36:58 AM
The biggest violators of competition is GOVERMENT. Stop regulating the fuel price. Stop regulating electricity price. Get more fuel and electricity competitors and then food will get cheaper.

nigel 6/30/2009 9:37:33 AM
@dimwit...the economy has now contracted by 180 000 jobs, please enlighten us as to how Zuma is going to create 500 000 permanent jobs in the 2nd worst recession the world has every seen, I challenge you to share this with us....

nigel 6/30/2009 9:40:05 AM
@Dimwit...do yourself a favour and read the following article posted today, & maybe then you will understand reality..http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/Content.aspx?id=74418

Kael 6/30/2009 9:42:37 AM
The real problem is that all these companies are concerned about is the return/dividend to the shareholders. This is done at the expense of the customers.They forget that without customers there will be no shareholders. It is difficult to understand why these companies, especially in a country like SA, cannot understand that there has to be a balance between the interests of the customer and the shareholder.

Wayne 6/30/2009 9:42:54 AM
Bily bob - and before you get on your high horse you should learn to pay some attention to comodity prices, if you do you will see that maize, wheat, sugar, coffee etc have all dropped in price over the last year, and thats without factoring in a stronger rand. so producers are earning less but consumers are paying more. Somewhere someone is making a killing.

Kicker 6/30/2009 9:47:01 AM
Halfws+Polo-Reading comments from you two for quite some time makes one wonder what profession you guys are in.Can you tell us what jobs are you doing? Doctor,Lawyer, businessmen,IT,Engineers,Accountants? I'm an Accountant what's Polo and Halfwise doing?

PeterB 6/30/2009 9:49:03 AM
Just ask yourself - what value do supermarkets really bring in the value chain? Minimal convenience because of range. They have no risk. The Manufacturers, make, deliver, merchandise, advertise and promote their products. The manufacturer until recently had full responsibility for the quality and efficacy of their products. The manufacturer takes returns and breakages. All promotional activity is paid for by the manufacturer. Space on shelf is either paid for or determined by rate of sale (driven by promotional activity, you guessed it, paid for by the Manufacturer)! Do the Retailers compete, sure they do, for their own benefit, but again I ask, what real value do they add?

colin 6/30/2009 9:55:54 AM
At times these big retailers negotiate huge discounts with manufactures but fail to allow those discounts to flow through to the customer - they are a bunch of thieves.

ItWontHelp 6/30/2009 9:56:18 AM
I don’t think it will help. The competition commission has already fined many large corps, but it seems like they gladly pay the fine and carry on their merry ways. Its cheaper for them to pay a fine then to reduce their prices. For this to work the public needs to play a role as well.

bo 6/30/2009 10:02:36 AM
@SimonP, Sinudeity, etc. you are doing exactly what i said you do last week. You are quick to bash other people and you never offer any positive contribution to any topic. Poloy..& Halfwise will always have their kind of comments and you ALWAYS fall for their BS and go around barking after them. Give us some FACTS regarding this topic and stop being their little b****h.

Anon 6/30/2009 10:04:44 AM
This article is rubbish. The statement is a simple one without any real analysis.

I agree with a comment saying that retailers are low margin businesses. If you pick up a set of financial statements and analyse the gross margins, where on earth are the retailers making this killing? They are the last stop on the supply chain, their increase must surely be in response to increased cost of sales.

Manufacturers are being investigated for uncompetitive behavior already, and their products are part of the cost. So why is there a discussion?

AndreS 6/30/2009 10:06:27 AM
To punish all those who violate competition acts by giving them a huge fine is not helping the general public at all. Those fines does not put money back into the consumers pockets. Make them lower their prices to such a level where they will actually sell at a loss. That way they get punished and the consumer wins.

Consumer 6/30/2009 10:07:08 AM
I totally agree with wayne, no one ever raised that bread price issue,this is way of Govt. to get money out from msupermarket and keep quite, let consumers suffer for ever.

Karen 6/30/2009 10:07:54 AM
I really don't understand this mentality!! If you don't like the prices shop somewhere else. I juggle my shopping between shops trying to get the best prices. I have already boycotted a couple of shops because they have just become rediculous. If everybody goes somewhere else the shop will be forced to have another look at their prices. Why do we keep shopping at places like P'nP and Spar etc and then whinge about the prices we have to pay and try to get somebody to do something about it. These shops are not the only source of food. Change what you are doing, don't always try to force everything around you to change to suit you.

Carey 6/30/2009 10:08:06 AM
Absolutely agree that they must be investigated. But I don't think they should be fined. They should be forced to lower their prices, and not be allowed to raise them above the official inflation numbers again for several years. Fines just get passed on to the consumer, and the prices stay the same, so its really the consumers that get punished, not the retailers. The sudden lowering of their profit margins will be enough punishment. PS: They should not be allowed to retrench either! Why should the staff pay for the sins of the managers?

Jann 6/30/2009 10:09:13 AM
I have regularly found Woolies to be cheaper than P'n P. Nescafe at Woolies was R49.95 but R55.95 at the other supermarkets. How can this be? It wasn't advertised as a special either. My dog food went from R12.59 a tin to R15.99 (Husky) at all the supermarkets. I complained to the manufacturers. Got a blah blah mail back about increasing costs etc. I've stopped buying it now. It's cheaper for me to feed my dogs chicken than it is to feed them dog food - go figure!

BSalmon 6/30/2009 10:15:11 AM
I agree that we are being ripped of and that all food suppliers should be audited by the competition commission!! Since the beginning of last year we are almost paying double for food and fuel, however, i have not really seen clothing prices escalate like the food prices!!! Something is seriously wrong and GOVERNMENT NEEDS to take action. They are biting the hand that is feeding them!!

cedb00 @ JayBeeBaby 6/30/2009 10:15:20 AM
The situation (as I understand it) is that the big supermarkets have distribution centres (DC's) throughout the country. They buy in bulk and then distribute to their retail outlets. (And are arguably the manufacturers' biggest clients!) Surely they can negotiate bulk prices and pass that saving on to the consumer? But they do not do that. If production costs come down because of cheaper petrol or a weaker rand (for the importers), why don't prices come down pro rata as well?

Al 6/30/2009 10:15:45 AM
I find that as South Africans we think 'punishment' before we think solutions. So the competition commission fines companies.... then what? Does anything change? Seen a change in bread prices lately? I would feel happier if the revenue that the competition commission is bringing in from fines should be used to subsidize school feeding schemes. Surely some process must be put in place to make sure it does not continue to happen?

cedb00 6/30/2009 10:16:08 AM
Sorry, that should have been STRONGER rand!

Fred Basset 6/30/2009 10:16:55 AM
@Sarah - You are the first person to make any sense to me on this topic. Everybody wants wage increase, but they don't want product prices to increase....how the hell does that work? As you said, people should rather support their local butcher, baker, grocer, etc. And the bottom line is this : IF YOU THINK THE PRODUCT IS OVERPRICED, DON'T BUY IT. We have to learn to trim our taste to our pocket, not keep demanding more money to accommodate what the media tells us we should buy.

B Salmon 6/30/2009 10:17:30 AM
Let's hope that we are not debating invane and that someone will do soemthing about these oxygen theifs!!!

SimonP 6/30/2009 10:18:52 AM
@bo, today I posted a question relating to statements made by two psters. What FACTS do you want me to put in a question? Ans out of interest, apart from telling other people what to post, what does your post contribute to this discussion? Its a bit like your quotas in sport, one rule for one and another rule for the other...DOUBLE STANDARDS. You asking for facts is!! More double standards!!

cedb00 @ Karen 6/30/2009 10:20:30 AM
Karen, I have always enjoyed your posts, but I'm afraid you are way off on this one. The vast majority of people do not have the luxury of driving around looking for the best deal. They make use of public transport and buy at the retail outlet most convenient to them (mostly where they get dropped off by the taxi's). Believe me, many, many people do not have a choice in this matter and they have to pay the prices fixed of the products on the shelves of the only supermarket in that area!

Sinudeity @bo 6/30/2009 10:21:03 AM
Whatever Bo. My criticism is always constructive, not on par with the "Vivas and the Mandla's". I think YOU need introspection this forum post. SimonP and myself did not start with the JZ BS. Scroll up and see who did. My constructive criticism, is, creating 500,000 jobs, before the end of the year, in light of hundreds of thousands of job losses on the cards, is IMPOSSIBLE. As for my SOLUTION: STOP CORRUPTION! Whats your 'constructive' criticism? Stop bitching? Heres mine to you, start being realistic.

Dave 6/30/2009 10:25:00 AM
Making profit, even exorbitant profit, is not against the law, as long as tax is paid on it. If you don't like the price somebody is charging then buy elsewhere. This is not a communist country, and price controls don't work. Just ask Zimbabwe

Martin 6/30/2009 10:28:53 AM
Commodity prices is only a portion of food inflation.Wage increases,electricity also plays a role.There are hundreds of factors influencing food prices.Most of you dont have an idea of the marketforces at work.

Francois 6/30/2009 10:29:15 AM
2 weeks ago - bought Ricoffy at Pick&Pay @ R48.99, this week went to buy again at special price of R53,99 (Pick & Pay claiming this is a special price down from R68,99.) Not only are they being uncompetitive also they are downright liars.

MC 6/30/2009 10:32:52 AM
I live in a small rural town. We have a P'nP and a Spar, wich are the only decent retailers in the area. We, unfortunately, do not have a real option of 'shopping around'. The closest butcher is about 30km and no real veggie shop to speak off. The closest 'city' is Nelspruit - 60km. The tollgate fees for a round trip comes to R84. We are definitely being exploited by the retailers in our town because of the limited options.

Robert Ndungane @ Kobus 6/30/2009 10:37:08 AM
Lol!!

Kickerk 6/30/2009 10:39:16 AM
People, people, people... This is how it really works. Not just bread prices, but all pricing is fixed. Manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers get together and discuss these prices and fix them so all of them can make maximum profit, it's the way the world works. Then the pricing commission comes along and say we will "investigate" the matter. But what actually happens, the commission is just taking their share of the profits and allowing these profit hungry companies to continue with their price fixing. So that in a few months, or years, the commission can come along again and "investigate", so they can take their share.
We are so blind to all these things happening around us. The human race is doomed to destroy itself in +- 30 years if we continue doing nothing. Evil prosper when good people do nothing...
So ja, we can have all the commissions in the world looking into price fixing, but it's merely a routine so that the commisions can take their share of the profits.

Val 6/30/2009 10:40:40 AM
@PeterB - you hit the nail on the head. The big chains have no risks as suppliers pay for everything. They get very special rental deals in shopping centres to attract shoppers and other retailers follow. A few ideas: CEO's and Directors should go to jail for price fixing. Don't waste time & money on 'commissions of enquiries'. Give LONG LASTING specials on essentials, not luxuries! Stop spending millions on TV advertising (sorry SABC)and pass the savings on to consumers who will know soon enough where to shop!

ann 6/30/2009 10:41:41 AM
@Jann, I fully agree, I find Woolies to be cheaper in most cases, also when I compare the quality of the products I can buy there. The quality of fresh produce at PnP and Spar is just shocking, and expensive to boot! The quality of the meat at Woolies is also exceptional, and there are no additives to the yoghurts etc. I find that my family is much healthier since I shop at Woolies, and they are eating much better.I refuse to pay horrendous prices for low quality and shoddy products.

B Salmon 6/30/2009 10:43:31 AM
Dave, that is just it, with all the taxes, inflation etc. that we are paying on EVERYTHING - what is left to survive!!!

mallencolly@Bongani 6/30/2009 10:52:01 AM
You need to hit that economics 101 text book again. PPI is the cost of production not the cost to the consumer, Elasticity is measured for items. Just out of curiosity what is the elasticity of some of the basic foodstuffs in SA? Bread, maize and oil? Waiting patiently for your response.

J 6/30/2009 10:53:11 AM
*sigh*
I get hugely irritated by Economics 101 students who know next to nothing about antitust law jumping on the "big bad retailer" bandwagon. While I believe that there is nothing wrong with investigation, people should be very careful to judge prematurely. And while I don't think it is the case with the food retailers (I would say inflation has a lot to do with their prices), it should be remembered that similar prices are, bizarrely, often a result of strong competition, as opposed to oligopoly.

James Wicks 6/30/2009 10:57:26 AM
I worked in France for a while. Cleaning boats and stuff. The minimum one got paid for cleaning was a 100 Euros. You go to the supermarket, get your breakfast, lunch and supper and you still walked out with a minimum of 50 to 60 Euros. Now you can either save that or have good night out, your choice. Now lets say that the minimum one gets in SA is R100 for a day. You go to any of the shops and buy the same food and you have pretty much got nothing left. How do people survive who are getting even less than a R100 a day, surely they cannot. Yes maybe if you eat pap which is cheap, one can last. But why can't the people getting the minimum also get the same stuff other consumers can enjoy. The price of food in this country is ridiculous and something should be done and done quickly. People, we need to make a difference, we must stop relying on others. Lets do it for ourselves. Cos we can!

Kim 6/30/2009 10:58:13 AM
Poor retailers in low marginal business?? How then can someone like Sean Summers (ex Pick&Pay) amass R5o million, that he can casually gamble in a pyramid scheme? Well done Precious - count me in for the boycott!

veryconcerned 6/30/2009 10:58:18 AM
WHAT ABOUT 7/11 THEY ARE THE WORST

Punani 6/30/2009 10:58:35 AM
Fining companies 10% of turnover is not a detterent. Manufacturers just factor potential fines into the price. Food for thought: these retailers barbaric trading practices, forced backdoor margins, trading term agreements, selling retailers space in store, rebates, forced advertising, forced pricing, supplier listing fees, compulsory merchandising, etc, etc) has forced some suppliers to collude. They always market themselves as socially responsible and fighting for the best prices for their consumers. The big wheel has turned and hopefully the result will be a complete abolishment of trading terms where everyone can compete on an even keel. The top retail managers are totally unethical. Justice at last.

Kim 6/30/2009 10:59:10 AM
Forgive my ignorance but can somebody please tell me if the fines paid to the Competitions Commission is channeled to the consumer. If not, then surely there is a case of collusion between the CC and the Government. (assuming that the fine goes to the govs' coffers

SimonP 6/30/2009 11:13:19 AM
@Nigel, the article you refer to confirms what most of us already knew, however some will say it is part of the third force, colonialist, white media, CIA plot to overthrow the ANC. No answers from Poloy and Halfwise so far....how strange!

Craig 6/30/2009 11:22:51 AM
You need a low cost retailer like leader price or Lidl kicks butt in Europe,I live in France and its cheaper my monthly shopping here than SA,if there is a % increase consumers are up in arms,i also find people here more self suffecient grow own veggies ect,buy in season fruits ect go to markets and buy meat direct from farmers,sure you can do the same in SA,just do a bit of research,asn for the retailers investigation what will happen a slap on the hand the consumer must take contraol they can dictate to the retailer,demand and supply-AVOIR

@Kael 6/30/2009 11:23:10 AM
Why is that a problem?

Steve 6/30/2009 11:24:26 AM
Went to Uk empeorium yesterday the equivalent size pack was our cocopops size box. Now this was jungle oats. 99p on the packaging, even pounds to rands it is more than 20 bucks a pack here. Futhermore I have found it more expensive to use our supermarkets than a lot of these kind of shops.

gogga 6/30/2009 11:24:46 AM
Pick and Pay has gone crazy with their prices.. as a loyal supported of this group I am very dissappointed at them.

@MC 10:32 6/30/2009 11:27:14 AM
There are quite a few farmers producing fruit and veggies in the district of Malelane. Why don't they form a co-op to supply Woolies etc as well as a local fruit and veg shop owned by locals. That way less money would leave your lovely town.

RogerM 6/30/2009 11:27:49 AM
Why not legislate that all retailers be compelled to display the cost price as well as the selling price of the item on the shelf label?? In this way, the exploitive profiteering would become a thing of the past and the shopper could make a well reasoned decision as to whether or not to pay the price for any item based on the markup or go elsewhere. If any of the larger chains wants to mark up an item by 300%,they would need huge b@lls to do so - just think of the fall out! Nobody will dispute the right of a business to make a resonable profit; after all, this is what being in business is all about, but making a profit "at all costs" to please shareholders is bleeding the economy and the average man in the street. Imagine how the poor feel.....

whites4zuma.co.za 6/30/2009 11:34:12 AM
There is so much more to this whole thing than simply greedy retailers. The whole dirty basket needs to be picked up and tossed out and laundered. Commodity Speculators, Currency Speculators, Unethical Stock Trading, Price Fixing, Executives earning Hundreds of Millions, Retailers Squeezing Suppliers, Suppliers providing inferior goods that need to be written off, incompetent and toothless public watchdogs and every citizen needs to wake up and realise that no matter what the equation - the man on the street is getting ripped off.

K 6/30/2009 11:34:42 AM
I was discussing this same issue with friends the other day. How do the lower income bracket manage to buy their monthly staples? I'm not even talking about wants! You CAN'T walk out of any shop today with a few groceries and pay less than R50.00. I'm talking about bread, milk, whatever cheap decent meat you can get your hands on and a small pack of vegetables. Even the end of month shopping prices have gotten out of hand..

Colin 6/30/2009 11:48:59 AM
I could not agree more. The supermarket chains and all involved are quick to push prices up when the fuel prices increases and then blame the increase on the fuel price hike, however when the fuel price decreases, the food prices does not decrease. The chain store and manufactures just wait for the next fuel price hike to "HIKE" their prices again and blame it on the same even though the fuel price is still less than before the intial price increase. This is daylight robbery in the eyes of the consumer and the major retailers, suppliers and manufactures should be taken to task about this. Would also help if the goverment deregulized the fuel.

AJ 6/30/2009 11:52:21 AM
I dont blame supermarkets, they would love to put each other out of business. I blame to little competition in suppliers. OMO, SKIP, SURF and SUNLIGHT all Unilever - how much do you think they care about Tito's rate cuts/increases when they have 95% of the market.

Michel 6/30/2009 11:52:32 AM
It might be so that retailers "only" have 3% margin, but what we don't see, are the listing fees, rebates that they accumulate. They all buy-in before price increases, and sell at the higher prices anyway. Who needs specials on Coke, and vienna's etc. Reduce veg, meat, sugar, bread etc. That is the "special" we need!

@whites4corruption.co.za 6/30/2009 11:58:40 AM
LOL

Hein 6/30/2009 12:01:02 PM
@Kobus: What are t'atters, precious?

Abs 6/30/2009 12:04:49 PM
Oh no.. Now 7-11 is dragged into this as well.. The cafe on the corner MUST have higher markups because their volumes are lower, and they provide a convenience service. If you buy your groceries there, then you are an idiot, and deserve to suffer.

ANDILE BOTMAN 6/30/2009 12:13:53 PM
COULDN'T AGREE MORE \, THIS CAPITALISTS WILL STOP AT NOTHING TO RIP US OFF OUR SMALL AND HARD EARNED MONEY , THEY EVEN TAKE ADVANTAGE OF SITUATIONS SUCH RESSECION TO HIKE PRICES

MC@11:27:14 6/30/2009 12:16:27 PM
Spot on, Malelane indeed! There are quite a few farmers that do supply to Woolworths, but I fully agree with you. The fruit & veg shops that open from time to time do not last very long - due to lack of support I guess, which is sad as we are really blessed with wonderful produce in this area.

Keith 6/30/2009 12:18:00 PM
What nobody has mentioned is the fact that VAT paid by the retailer is calculated on the turnover. Why, then, would Government wish to do anything REAL about the porice of foodstuff? It suits Government as it means more VAT in their coffers!! The only solution is to do our shopping with our feet. If we are not happy with the selling price, don't buy the product! Simple as that! Let it rot on the shelves so that the manufacturer must accept the return from the retailer. We, as consumers, have a lot of p[ower - we just never use it because we have become too acccustomed to the "easiness" of shopping as we know it. It is up to us to make a change.

CC 6/30/2009 12:31:15 PM
My London family cannot believe the prices of our food and cleaning materials, e.g. shampoo exactly the same make can be purchased there for one pound (buy one - get one free) and here it costs R62-99 for the same size each!!!!

Graham C 6/30/2009 12:33:37 PM
One of the latest scams is to keep the price steady but reduce the quantity, also noticed large price increases in rice,coffee,dog food of over 50% over last 6 months?????

Aaah 6/30/2009 12:35:03 PM
Supply and demand, fools. Work it out for yourselves.

MLS 6/30/2009 1:31:11 PM
There is nothing as dangerous as a little knowledge....

Anon 6/30/2009 3:11:06 PM
@halfass and poloyamoron: Did JZ say create or loose 500 000 jobs? He has already lost 180 000 in the first quarter, so only 320 000 to go idiots!

whites4zuma.co.za 6/30/2009 3:12:13 PM
Thats why we never accomplish anything, is because people would rather fight with each other than fight against the system that has enslaved us all. Thats the reason for our group, to find common ground, to stop pointing fingers and get on with the job of building our country as friends and not enemies. Its easy to spend all day yakking and do nothing but spread negativity and hate.

MJ 6/30/2009 3:28:31 PM
The competition commission is getting the money that the consumers have paid so they are in fact benefiting not so??? I will also investigate if i can get money for nothing!!!

Mobster 6/30/2009 3:34:07 PM
The copetition Board is a toothless dog! the fines levied should not go into state coffers, the companies being fined should, under audit, reduce/discount their product price to consumers to the value of the fine. Then cosumers will benefit. Crrently the state pockets the free fines and smiles!

Kickerk 6/30/2009 3:47:27 PM
@whites4zuma.co.za. We share the same thinking. If only everybody commenting here can realise that the fight is not with the people, but with the system. No matter who is in power, it will always be the same, because they serve and promote the same system. Kill the system so all people can be free. I bet all the negative ones commenting here, goes to a building called a church, where they get even more enslaved by an outdated belief system called religion. People! Wake up, we can not make place for the new if we don't let go of the old corrupt and enslaving systems...

Ria 6/30/2009 4:21:08 PM
Agree with Sarah completely. Only problem is that if I walk the one and a half km to the mearest supermarket and back to save on fuel, I am stuck with an extremely expensive Spar. The poor farmers can hardly make ends meet. If the supermarkets are not ripping us off, the whole supply chain is. The wholesalers, the transporters of goods and the packagers. I am growing my own vegetables and because the weather is too cold for some veg at the moment, I am growing them in pots on top of an old garden table. I am also raising my own seedlings indoors. Fresh, organically grown tomatoes, spinach and chives. Come summer I will grow most of my own veg. They only need a couple of drops of water each day. My garbage has halved because I have started a compost bin.

Trevor Gothan 6/30/2009 5:26:10 PM
How about consumers collaborating on a website to track costs - between retailers and over time, so that we can shop with more knowledge and choice. Each member can input latest prices from stores in their area for a selected range of goods. All members can access date to plan purchases on one trip to the better retailers. Will require some committment, rather than just complaining though.

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